the blog

Quotas, safe spaces, and image obsession – Report from the Leeds Open Space

There was a great turn out at Sheaf Street on Monday 26 March for good food and an evening of conversation and debate about how we can begin to tackle inequality in the music industry.  In fact so good was the Leeds open space that I was struck dumb (literally, with the flu, hence the […]Read More

Mentoring, Imposter Syndrome, Role Models and More – Report from the Liverpool Open Space

So, exactly how can we how we can begin to tackle inequality in the music industry? This question was the focus of a day of discussion, reflection and debate at the wonderful Constellations in Liverpool last Saturday. A small but select gathering of musicians, promoters, journalists and researchers came together for the second of our […]Read More

Making gender equality in the music industry a reality…. What can we all do?

The music industry can look an awful lot like a man’s world, even in 2018. Fewer than 1 in 5 songwriters in the UK are female, just 1 in 6 labels are majority-owned by women, and fewer than a third of those working in the industry are female. Get to the upper echelons, and only […]Read More

Sound City Liverpool Korea international showcase

We’re currently part way through a 3 year role as evaluator and critical friend to the Sound City Korea showcase project. In September 2015 Sound City Liverpool was awarded a grant through Arts Council England and the British Council’s Artist International Showcasing Fund to develop a three year programme of activity targeting the increasingly important […]Read More

Get curious… Get Generous… Reflections from Venues Day Business Up, Be Inspired panel

Earlier this week I joined 300 other delegates at the Music Venue Trust’s second Venues Day, all of us enjoying the slightly weird experience of drinking tea in the Ministry of Sound bar at 10am on a Tuesday morning. And all of us clutching hot off the press copies of the GLA’s Rescue Plan for […]Read More

EventBox’s CEO Joey Baxter charts the process of bringing a new software platform to market

EventBox is a mobile app and website that lets you listen to gig listings to discover music events happening nearby.  It was supported to market through the hub’s Joining the Dots programme.  Here CEO Joey Baxter charts the process of bringing an idea to fruition. When we started Joining The Dots in March 2014, we had […]Read More

Looking to the future of music, tech and finance: summary of the #OneDayer Insight programme

Alongside the main conference strand of the #Onedayer, the hub ran an insight programme – short presentations by experts in their own field which looked out into the future and shared (roughly!) five key ideas. Had an insightful & inspiring day @tweetsatthehub #OneDayer! Learnt about data, social future & remembering to make good music! Thanks […]Read More

‘Fresh ideas… knowledge, greater understanding, confidence and new people’ – what musicians will get from The One Dayer

the hub’s One Dayer – Independent Music, Money & Tech takes place in Camden on 1 July. In her latest blog, the hub’s Director, Julia Payne, talks about why the event is a ‘must go to’ event for musicians, songwriters and composers working in beyond mainstream music – and what they can expect to get […]Read More

WHY IT’S REALLY IMPORTANT YOU CAST YOUR #VOTE FOR MUSIC

With just one week to go till Election Day, it’s all getting a bit crazy here at #VoteForMusic HQ. Voting closes on 7 May, with results being announced from The Great Escape on 15 May. Plans are also taking shape for our #VoteForMusic debate, when senior politicians and others will debate key campaign issues. With […]Read More

#Vote For Music – kitchen table politics, for real

We’ve seen David Cameron slicing tomatoes in his, Nick Clegg drinking white wine in his, and Ed Miliband with a mug of builder’s tea in his. Politics these days seem to be all about cosy chats in kitchens. But in the case of #VoteForMusic, it’s true. Chief hubster, Julia Payne, explains how she came up with […]Read More